Page 7 of Forever Mine
Liz abruptly stands. “Why would I let some crazy man who kicked my door in and scared the crap out of me touch me?”
“You’re the love of my life. We were supposed to get married. Start a family. Have a life together. I’ve been dead for a year missing you. Don’t you understand any of that?”
Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say because Liz unleashes on him.
“I don’t give a shit what I see in the pictures. You’re a complete stranger. You’re the scary guy who barged into my home uninvited and unwelcome. I’m not going to stand here and allow you to bully me into feeling something that I don’t fucking remember!”
I’m pretty sure all our eyes widened. I think I can count on one hand the times I ever heard her say “fuck.” The soft-spoken, sweet Liz we once knew is not the fiery, rage-filled woman currently glaring at us.
Jay pounds a fist to his chest. “I love you, and you love me.”
A spark ignites behind her green eyes.
“I don’t know whoyouare! I’m sorry if that upsets you. I’m sorry if my nonexistent memory causes problemsfor you. But you can’t barge into my apartment and demand that I love you or tell me that I’m your girlfriend. I don’t even know whoIam!”
“Liz,” Jay chokes, tears falling unbidden.
Her head drops in shame when she sees them. “I’m sorry. I just… I don’t…”
Seemingly the only rational one of us at the moment, Elijah says, “This is a difficult situation for everyone. The most important thing is that you’re okay.”
Liz inhales, holds it, then blows it out in a rush. “From the pictures, I get that we knew each other and were friends. Igetthat. But please understand how confusing this is for me. I don’t know any of you. You’re all strangers to me.”
All the nights I dreamed about seeing her again never prepared me for this fucked-up mess. A mess I have no freaking clue how to begin fixing.
“Why don’t we order some pizzas and sit down and talk, yeah?” I suggest.
She looks like she wants to tell mehell no, and to get the fuck out of her apartment, but something stops her. Maybe her curiosity is piqued.
“Yeah, okay. I need to call Drew and Daniel first.”
“Who the hell are Drew and Daniel?” Jay snaps.
Jesus fucking Christ.
Needing to get him away from her for a few minutes so he can get his head on straight, I take Jay by the belt loops of his shorts and pull.
“Help me fix her door since you’re the one who broke it. You still have that toolbox in your truck? Jay,” I prompt when he ignores me.
“What?”
“The toolbox in the truck. Fix her door.”
He reluctantly rips his gaze away from Liz. “Fine.”
The sun’s angle is blinding when we step outside as it reflects off the windshields of the cars parked in front of the building. Sweat begins to trickle down the valley of my spine, but I don’t know if it’s from the humidity or the tumult of the last hour barraging me.
Once we get to the bottom of the stairs and out of earshot, I lay into him.
“What is wrong with you?”
“Drop it.”
Not going to happen.
“Didn’t you see how badly you scared her? You broke down her damn door.”
Guilt takes a ride on his shoulders, hunching them inward. “I saw her and—forget it. What I did was inexcusable.”
